Soul Eaters
by Hailey Westerholdt
Summary: SP story in a Soul Eater setting. Tweek must find his counterpart- a lower class human who will become his "weapon" in order to enroll at a school that will teach them to fight against demons, ghouls, witches and other evil creatures. But how do you become so close to a stranger that you can read the wavelenght of their soul? (Mostly Slash) Creek, Style, Dip, Bunny, Candy etc
1. I've been waiting for this silence

- Soul Eaters -

Chapter 1: I've been waiting for this silence all night long

The room was packed with a huge number of people. Most of them were standing in groups, some of them appeared to know each other, some obviously had brought their families as emotional back up on this special day. One boy stood alone in the corner by the balcony, looking around frantically and gripping a glass in his hand hard enough to nearly break it. He was blond and of average height for a boy of 15 years. His bright green eyes were searching the room for his parents who had left him there on his own to get some food. „Have fun my boy" is what his father had said before giving him a quick pat on his head, already passing him by. „There are so many children your age, honey. You are bound to know some of them, so go and make some conversation." Is what his mother left him with.

The truth was Tweek didn't know many people his age and even if saw someone he recognized they should know that he would never approach them, especially not in a huge mass of people like this. Of course he knew what his problem was and his parents knew it too, even if they chose to just ignore it altogether. Tweek was by far the shyest boy he knew. The few times he had had eye contact with an acquaintance all he would do was grip his glass tighter and lower his eyes immediately. Really, it was no wonder that people didn't come over to talk to him either, he was such an awkward mess! The green double breasted coat with the nice embroidery he wore was a bit too stiff for his liking and the black bow around his neck didn't exactly make him feel more comfortable either. The white cotton shirt he wore underneath had already suffered a little damage because he had managed to spill a bit of his drink over himself the moment someone had entrusted the expensive crystal glass to him. Out of sheer nervousness he had nearly dropped it to the floor. Now he had to suffer the consequences and keep his coat buttoned even though it was quite a warm summer night and he would have liked to at least wear it unbuttoned. At least his dark gray breeches were still clean and his brown leather shoes had been polished to perfection. That was at least one part of his appearance he did feel comfortable with.

Besides his immense shyness Tweek was actually a boy like most others of his age and social class. His parents were rather well off, his father successfully running the family business (his ancestor had been a merchant that had started rapidly growing trade company. To this day they held the monopole on importing coffee...hmmm...) that had been established many generations ago and his mother being a very normal, calm and loving house wife. Like any other child he had been home schooled up until now. Since his 15th birthday three months ago his parents had started to cart him around and accompanied him to events such as this.

Even though it looked like a social gathering of all the members of the higher class it actually was much more than just that. The point of herding all these young people in here was to give them a chance to acquire a "weapon". Not a weapon like a sword or a gun, but an actual person.

Tweek had of course always known that this day would come. His parents had been so excited for him when he had first shown a certain talent as a weapons wielder. Which was ironic if you considered his cautious nature. His father had broken into a beautiful speech full of metaphors and big words he didn't understand. His mother had smiled contently for hours, brought him his favorite drinks and started to re-plan his entire future for him.

But the hardest part was yet to come. He had to actually find his weapon before he could enroll at the prestigious school his parents had chosen for him. And then he would have to get along with this stranger, train with them, get close to them, spend copious amounts of time with him... was there any chance for him at all not to disappoint his parents and embarrass himself completely? And what kind of person would his counterpart be? His father had told him lots about the people that were born as weapons- that they were all violent ruffians, simple minded and not be trusted. Of course, Richard Tweek had never acquired a weapon himself and therefore could only repeat what he overheard from other people or what he had read in books. Since he had never met his destined partner he had never been able to fulfill his dreams of becoming a great warrior. Now he loaded all of his dreams onto his sons shoulders. Tweek half wished he would never meet his partner either. Then he could just go back home, hide from the world a bit longer and live a quiet, unimportant little life. And he wouldn't be dressed up anymore like a doll and dragged to these terrible gatherings.

The weapons were almost exclusively people from the lower class. This had to do with how their abilities were inherited. For a wielder, it was always clear; if one of your parents had the gift of being able to feel soul's wavelengths then their children would have the same ability. Over centuries these families had become influential and wealthy due to their rare talents. But for a weapon things were a bit different. They came for the common people, far below T week's own social class. Their abilities were not hereditary but often skipped many generations or only occurred once in the family like a flickering candle in the dark, never to arise in anyone again.

Therefore the separation between the social classes had become more and more firm and had reached a point by now that made it unbeseeming for their youths to mingle before enrollment at one of the few academies was possible.

Tweek had lived a very sheltered life. His days had been filled with his home schooling, learning all about the family trade from his father and his alone time which he spent reading, riding horses or other hobbies that were ideal to carry out in solitude. The only low class people he had ever met were the servants at his fathers' house or laborers hired to work on plantations or to fix things.

Now there was a high probability that one of them would become his contract-bound partner, share a room with him, share the next few years with him even! The thought made a big lump form in his throat. He hadn't been properly prepared for this at all he realized. What if his partner thought him to be so unfitting that he would be rejected on the spot? What if his abilities weren't good enough in the end and he'd make a complete fool of himself? What if he never found the one and his parents would look at him with these disappointed eyes for the rest of his life?

The sound of a bell ripped him forcefully out of his thoughts. Now the same thing would happen again that usually happened at these things... all the wielder candidates would leave the room and meet with the weapons in another room, separated from the family and friends that had tagged along to this point. Tweek had only been at a few of those gatherings (the first time no one had been able to pry him away from his parents to the great embarrassment of Richard Tweak) but they always seemed to follow the same procedures: They were herded into an adjoining room, they wandered about for a while under the watchful eyes of several attendants and during this time some people would meet their partners. How that took place Tweek had only seen from afar a few times. Two people would suddenly staring at each other glued to the spot as if in trance, then they would come closer slowly, as if the gap separating them would be too much to bear any longer. You could see in their eyes of how sure they were to have found _the one_. The blond couldn't really imagine the same thing happening to him at all. He had never looked at a person and felt any kind of connection for his fears and suspiciousness would always be in the way.

Tweek's eyes nervously scanned the room for his parents but they were nowhere to be seen. With a sigh he slowly made his way over to the doors through which everyone else was already leaving into the adjoined room in order to meet with the weapons. He would just do what he always did – keep out of trouble and out of sight as well as he could manage, stand in the corner somewhere and wait for this social nightmare to end so he could go home and sulk underneath his blankets for a few hours.

The room he entered looked much like the first one, a beautiful hall probably meant for dancing, held in beautiful soft cream colours and lavishly decorated with gold. The warm light made everything look rather calm and harmonious but Tweek noticed with a little bit of satisfaction that he was not the only one who was nervous and uncomfortable. Among the youths gathered there was an awful amount of awkward silences and anxious shuffling as they started to move around a bit. Tweek's gaze was caught by some movement above his head. There was a gallery above the room, nearly going all around. Perched on it there were perched some attendants in professional looking black attire, all looking down at them with cold eyes and a stiff demeanor.

"Great, being watched makes me feel so much more confident..." Tweek thought to himself, subconsciously grimacing at the prospect of even more pressure. He would just go and find himself a nice corner now...

Then, the doors on the other side of the room swung open, revealing the other guests- the future weapons. Tweek involuntarily let out a squeak which earned him a few dubious looks from the more confident wielder candidates. Without looking up the blond boy quickly tried to disappear into the mass of wielders, letting himself fall back so he couldn't be seen from across the room. He could feel his cheeks burning (Both for the shame of having squeaked like a mouse just now and for the general shyness that was determined to make this evening hell for him again) and spilled some of his drink over his sleeve. But he was too nervous to care about that right now.

The was a impenetrable silence within the whole room that even the soft music that could be heard from somewhere could not cure. The weapons were the first to move. With sure steps they entered the room and made their way across it within only a few short moments. From his position at the far end of the room Tweek was unable to see any more and was thankful for that. His sleeve was wet and smelled of sweet light alcohol now but it still did little distract him from the cold dread that sat in his stomach like a brick stone. Hopefully every possible match that could be made here today would be made _quickly_ so he could finally leave and go home. After a few minutes the silence was not quite as thick anymore. The people had started talking to one another, most of the upper class youth's standing in little groups but the curiosity had mostly won over the skepticism by now so most of the people had mingled class be damned.

From the corner of his eye Tweek had even seen one or two pairs finding together. It did look rather amazing from the view of a bystander. Both people looked as if they had been slapped, then looked at each other in awe before closing the distance and initiating physical contact for the first time by simply holding hands or something similar. Probably only one hour or even less than that had passed but his feet were hurting from standing around for so long and he wanted out of these stiff clothes now. Thankfully this would all be over soon, he could go find his parents and finally-

Then it hit him with an unexpected force.

His gaze locked with someone else's.

Dark eyes focused on him from across the room. And Tweek realized instantly that this was _it_. It didn't feel like being slept though, it felt as if someone had emptied a huge bucket of ice water over his head. Within his heart something suddenly fit, some emptiness that he had never noticed was there in the first place was suddenly filled with something undefinable. There was a sudden feeling of awe and admiration and confidence that had never been there before the dark gaze had met his. He had found his weapon. Everything and everyone else was gone from his mind and faded from his view. A tall young man with short black hair and sharp eyes was _the one _for him. His counterpart differed from him like night and day. He wore rather casual clothes much more loose then his, a dark brown jacket over a dark blue pullover and gray pants over beaten black boots.

In the blink of an hair the dark haired male had made his way over to him but to Tweek who was rooted to the spot as if under a spell, it felt like half an eternity of waiting. He was even taller than he had estimated before, at least a head taller then the blond boy. Tweek felt dwarfed by him but for some reason not intimidated at all.

His partner was in front of him now, their eyes still in contact and unable to break the connection. A strong hand extended towards him slowly until it was gently placed on his left cheek. It was warmer than he had expected and softer than he would have guessed from the appearance of it's owner.

The slightly narrow lips above him parted and a deep voice spoke to him in a calm and confident tone.

"Your name?"

This was _it_, this was _it_, this was _it_. The only man that could ever be his partner had found him and immediately became invaluable to him and filled Tweek's soul with warmth with his mere presence.

"Tweek", was the only word the blonde could whisper in his trance.

The dark eyes adopted a certain spark that nearly made his knees go weak.

"I'm Craig."

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOX

End of Chapter One

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOX

This time I'll put my blabbering down here so people won't be put off right away :D

So, this story does have a few elements of the manga Soul Eater, but it's mostly just the setting. I might steal a few characters as well, but only minor ones if at all, therefore you do not have to know SE at all since barely anything will be used without some major alterations.

I do like Soul Eater to be honest – I think the idea of a Shinigami school is great and there are endless possibilities to it but I'm not all that happy about the execution I guess. The SE artwork is not as good as could be and things aren't explained too well either.

As you could already guess these are the biggest changes I made to the original SE setting:

The story takes place in the 19th century (or something. I'm not going to be historically correct about everything)

The relationship between Meister and Weapon will not be equal. So forming a team will be very difficult for any of them.

There will be mostly yaoi parings (Creek, Style, Tyde, Bunny etc.) and I might try my hand at some Cendy for the first time ever... ;)

The process of the Soul Eating will also be changed. I thought it really weird that the manga is called Soul Eater but there isn't much soul eating going on at all.

For some more inspiration go check out the "South Eater" opening on youtube 3

The title of this Chapter was taken from the Silversun Pickups' Song "Lazy eye".


	2. Leave out all the rest

Chapter Two: Leave out all the rest

The moment of magic between Tweek and Craig had only lasted for a few minutes. After being in deep awe for a moment the glorious high of having found together had started to fade like mist in the first rays of morning sunlight.

Tweek wasn't sure whether to be glad or really, really embarrassed that his parents had entered the scene and made a huge commotion while congratulating him and giving him hugs.

And while holding eye contact with this Craig person had been the most natural thing a little while ago, he was now back to feeling insecurity nag at him when he tried to even hold the taller man's gaze and so he spend the better part of his parent's outbreak of joy looking to his feet and hiding his flushed face.

Craig seemed to be the kind of person that could stare anyone down with little effort, if any. His eyes were just so sharp and piercing by nature that one immediately felt as if he was analyzing everybody around him and trying to find their weak spot just by staring.

Only shreds of his father's praises and metaphors actually reached his ears.

"We are so proud of you, son."

"This is the beginning of a new life for you, my boy. It surely is the start of something great. Like the very first sip of coffee on a sunny spring morning."

"I was almost giving up hope for you but it seems you were born under a lucky star after all."

"Father, please..." Tweek tried weakly. If only the people around them would stop staring, then maybe he wouldn't feel like running out of the room and hiding under an abandoned table so much...

Craig in the meantime was just standing off to the side, quietly watching the scene like he was supposed to. He didn't exactly seem happy to have found a Meister, that was not the right word... he wasn't relieved either, nor did he appear to be nervous in any way. There was just a quiet acceptance to him that made Tweek's parents' emotional outburst even more embarrassing.

Craig wasn't contributing in any way. And he was not the one who suddenly decided to break etiquette either.

Against everything considered normal, Richard Tweak suddenly turned around as if noticing his son's weapon for the first time. The boy was taller than him, so he actually had to look up to see his face. Tweek's counterpart went to do a bow like it was customary (even though it was a rather unenthusiastic bow and definitely lacked the submissive grace it was supposed to have). Faster than Craig could react his hand was grabbed by the overeager man who went on to shake it with gusto.

"My boy, I am so glad that you and my son are partners from now on. Let my congratulate you from the bottom of my heart."

The dark eyes were widening slightly, his lips parted as if to say something but apparently Craig decided there was nothing to say to this unusual approach, so he closed his mouth again and waited patiently until Richard decided to let go of his hand.

People were whispering around them by now, some spreading open little fans so it wasn't as obvious that they were gossiping about the weird Tweak family.

Thankfully even his father noticed at some point that congratulating a newly found Weapon was not exactly proper etiquette and his behavior nothing but a source of new gossip for the other upper class people around, so he led his wife, son and the ever silent Craig out of the room to speak in private.

Once they were outside, they made their way down the stairs that led to the front yard, where dozens of footboys stood ready to attend to the guests and get their carriages ready for them.

Tweek stood by and listened intently as his father pried some more personal information out of the stoic boy and learned that Craig would turn 17 in autumn and had been a blacksmith's apprentice before his talent had been discovered.

Soon their carriage had been prepared so they could the Tweak family could start their journey home. Tweek's father waved at their coachman to let him know they were coming in a minute.

He addressed Craig in an unusually solemn voice: "We expect you to arrive at our home next Sunday afternoon to have you sign the contract. You will be sent to school a day later so bring everything you need for your stay there."

Craig bowed, this time not interrupted by the other man. As his parents turned to leave, Tweek looked at his partner one more time, suddenly feeling a little sad their their first meeting was cut short. He pulled himself together enough to be able to hold Craig's slightly cold gaze and gave him his best smile. "I look forward to meeting you again!" he pressed out, quickly turning around to follow his parents and fleeing Craig' s reaction. If he had lingered a second more he would have been able to see the taller boy smiling back cautiously.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO

As was custom, Craig arrived on the last Sunday of the month which happened to be a full moon night to sign the contract between him and his Meister. It was a windy day and a storm was heading the way of the Tweak estate. It would probably arrive by nightfall and it was expected to be a thunderstorm with heavy rain and a lot of destructive power.

Craig looked as unaffected as ever when he reached the Tweak's home. It was an old building that had belong to them for many generations. It was protected by a high weather worn outer wall only to be entered though a heavy metal gate. The house itself was made from the same light stone as well. Even though it wasn't as big or as beautiful as the house of an aristocrat would have been, it still clearly stated the Tweak's business success and their good fortune to any visitor. Around the main house were a few smaller buildings for servants, stables for the horses and cattle. Everything looked very clean and orderly. Craig was let in through the gate by one of the servants and brought up to the house. He took off the dark blue had he wore to protect him from the cold wind and his battered black cloak only for them to be taken by a quick servants busy hands and to be put away somewhere to dry along with the large duffle bag he had carried.

Tweek had watched his arrival through the window and was now seated in the living room, perched on a big stuffed couch between his mother and a notary who had been sent especially from the ministry to overview the signing of the contract personally. The soft scent of coffee surrounded them as the servants brought in a few cups and a big pot of his favorite drinks before quickly disappearing from the room just as Craig was brought in through the main hall.

Tweek's stomach churned at the slight of the tall boy who seemed very out of place in his shabby clothes. The torn dark pants and the gray shirt with the ripped sleeves only alienated the Weapon further from his orderly and well-tended surroundings.

After providing everyone with a steaming cup of coffee Richard Tweak didn't waste much time before coming to the point and presenting his son and the Weapon with the contract that was written on a single piece of yellowish parchment. I was a ready-made text which contained the same regulations that applied to any other pair in the entire country, assembled by the specially appointed agency that registered any and all Weapons.

Tweek looked up into Craig's face but his profile hat yet to betray any emotion. The blonde only had a vague idea of what the contract contained, but he had a hunch that it would not be in Craig's favor at all. His Weapon however seemed to accept his fate without any hesitation.

His father placed the piece of paper before the pair for them to read. Nervously Tweek's eyes scanned the lines quickly. By the time he had finished the first paragraph his hand had started to twitch uncontrollably. The ministry official tapped his foot impatiently.

It was horrible Tweek decided. This was not what he had wanted for a person that was supposed to become closer to him than anyone else. The parchment stated that Craig was very well under his command to an unexpected extent. Apparently Craig would not be able to do anything without his permission. When he tried to defy Tweek's will -whether it was a direct command or just an unspoken expectation on the blonde's part- the spell would punish him. What exactly that meant, Tweek had no idea. But there was supposed to appear a sign on his skin as a symbol of his servitude which would remain forever and could not be removed by any means.

He had not meant for Craig's freedom to be taken away and his dignity to be spurned and belittled like this. Who had decided this? He knew, there definitely had been a time when a Weapon was an equal partner to it's wielder, so how had things changed so drastically?

As Tweek was having this internal war he watched Craig's mimic to find out if he was the only one shocked by what he had read or whether Craig finally realized what he had gotten himself into. And really, the taller male did look a bit pale by now, his lips pressed together in a thin line and his brows deeply furrowed.

Surely he would protest against something so atrocious? But Craig said nothing. He held out his arm and watched as the official put Tweek's hand none too gently over his own before making him repeat his oath. The Weapon's voice was cool and steady as he practically gave away all of his freedom to be in the hand of a trembling blond child. When he had spoken the words Craig suddenly winced in pain and cradled his hand to his chest as if it was heavily injured. He ripped the sleeve of his battered pullover up to inspect his arm just to reveal a multitude of thin black lines stretching across his skin, moving like waves of ink over his flesh and slowly forming symbols. It must've burned like fire because Craig could not keep in a pained hiss as the lines came to a halt slowly. On his wrist there was a circle, the kind used in old magic spells. It was surrounded by a mass of small symbols, squares and thin intertwined lines that reached almost to the crook of his arm and climbed the upside of his arm much like a rambler rose.

Craig bit his teeth together so hard that his jaw was bound to hurt but he refuses to utter another sound at all.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO

A little while later, Tweek decided to check in on Craig before they went to bed. There was still light in the guest room and the door was unlocked, so the blonde let himself in silently. Eyes quickly scanning the room for his counterpart.

Craig stood on the balcony, looking outside to watch the storm come closer slowly, now and then a bright flash could be seen in the distance, announcing the nasty weather that would be upon them soon. The dark haired boy turned his head slightly when the soft steps came closer in order to let the other know that his presence was acknowledged. Tweek joined him on the balcony, standing not too close as to not make the other uncomfortable with his close proximity.

"Your parents are..." Craig began in his usual calm voice, so Tweek was unsure which words the taller male would chose to describe the Tweaks. Surely, he would find them more than just a little eccentric by now. It was no wonder if Craig was angry, Tweek supposed. After all that he had already been put through he was bound to be irritated.

"Well, they are a bit...unorthodox..." interrupted Tweek trying to smother any less flattering words that Craig might have possibly used.

Craig turned his head to look at Tweek, his eyes held an amused twinkle.

"They're nice." Was all he said in return.

"Oh. T- thank you." Tweek mumbled quickly, hoping his voice didn't sound too insecure and didn't make him look even more of a fool in Craig's eyes.

Craigs gaze was facing away from him again, intently studying the dark heavy rainclouds curling and withering in the pale moonlight. If he were honest with himself, Tweek might acknowledge that Craig's serenity and endless indifference irked him more than he liked to admit. Here they were – after signing a contract that would change both their lives forever, with the proof of what had been done carved intricately into Craig's skin- and yet, it seemed as if nothing could shake the man.

The blond took a deep breath. If he didn't ask now then there might never again be a better moment and he would never dare to ask the question that was bugging him so much right now. He decided to concentrate all his courage and just throw his impression out there, hoping that the taller boy would care to engage in this awkward conversation at all.

"You were really calm about the contract..." Tweek stated carefully, leaving the question open for Craig to pick up.

The dark haired man shifted a bit but took a moment to actually answer.

"Well, I knew it wouldn't be pleasant for me."

His reply stung Tweek, as if a very large thorn had been pushed directly into his heart. Craig was sure to resent him. He probably hid an unmeasurable amount of anger and frustration behind this indifferent exterior in order not to let these negative feelings out on his Meister. But they must have been there, Tweek reasoned. After all, who wouldn't be mad at the source of all their problems?

"I-I didn't know it w-would be this hard.." Tweek stumbled over the words like a klutz, but he couldn't help being insecure of how to justify the whole ordeal.

Craig's dark gaze seemed slightly surprised at the uncontrolled emotion in the smaller boy's voice.

The wind picked-up and a cold breeze tore at their clothes and hair for a moment, disrupting yet another moment of silence between the Meister and Weapon.

"It's not like I had a choice." Craig's deep voice resounded over the sound of wind rushing past their heads.

"Don't you know? My parents received a large sum of money from your father in order to let me be your Weapon without making a fuss. I was practically bought."

With these words the man left the balcony, leaving Tweek to stand alone in the cold stormy breeze.

The wind picked up again with force, rattling the shudders and throwing the first roll of thunder and rain of what would be a heavy thunderstorm. Tweek had the least restful sleep in a long time that night.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO

The continuous rumble below him became slower and slower. Tweek opened his eyes and saw the world pass by fast, but not as fast as it had a while earlier. His temple was pressed uncomfortable against the window and he was sure to be punished with a very stiff neck later. Well, he supposed traveling by train was still better than by carriage, so he was rather thankful that the steaming iron monstrosity had been made to carry all the students and the agents to the DWMA. It was located in a remote part of Colorado called South Park and at the same time functioned as a school and as the headquarters of the order which had been founded to help defend the public against the rising numbers of evil creatures.

If a Meister and Weapon duo were good enough and finished the task that would promote them to agents as well then they would become part of the order as well, requested by governments all over the world to ban demons, ghost, witches and whatever else appeared to torment the people these days.

Tweek silently turned his head to watch his companion for a moment. Craig sat opposite him, his arms folded and his back pressed into the soft brown leather bench behind him. His eyes were closed though the blonde doubted that he was really sleeping. From what he had gathered in the short time he knew him, Tweek thought he could quite confidently say that his partner was always on alert and not someone who would fall asleep very tightly in any public place. The whistle on the steam locomotive chose that moment to emit a shrill cry which proved Tweek to be right. At the noise Craig's eyes shot open like a hawks' and immediately bore themselves into Tweek's.

"We'll arrive at DWMA in a few minutes." Tweek said quickly as if to justify his staring. His partner only nodded in return.

A few minutes later the train pulled in to the station that was designed specifically for anyone that wanted to travel on to the academy. It consisted of barely more than a sign post and a small roofed waiting area. And really, there wasn't anything else here but endless dry looking grassland with a few persistent pine trees sprinkled here and there and the silhouette of the Rocky Mountains in the far distance. Anyone who would leave the train here could have no other destination than the academy. There were many others exiting the train here today, most of them definitely students judging by the gray uniforms the all wore. Some of the people donned black and white uniforms though and Tweek suspected that they were members of the order.

Behind the little station Tweek could already see the school (as it was the only building near and far it wasn't hard to guess that it must be DWMA) awaiting them on top of a grassy hill. It was a giant castle and looked more like a castle than a school where masses of students would be roaming the halls. It was made of very dark stone with red rooftops and some white stone around the doors, windows and parts of the towers, of which there were at least half a dozen stretching high into the skies like giant needles. The sun shone down upon the black stone as if it was trying to make the place seem more welcoming but failing miserably.

Tweek watched Craig shoulder most of their heavy luggage out of the corner of his eye and shouldered his load as well. The blond took a deep breath. Then the two were on their way towards a new part of their life.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO

End of Chapter Two.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO

Thanks for all the great feedback, I'm really happy that people liked my idea.

Man, I think I'm mashing together South Park, Soul Eater and Ao no Exorcist and Harry Potter by now :DD But I'm trying to make it so you don't have to know all of them to understand my fanfic.

This chapter was sort of an in-between chapter... I have planned a few things out by now, there are so many characters than can be used and so many possibilities...

In the next chapter we shall see how much of a Meister little Tweek really is... pls review :)


	3. This is harder than we thought

Thanks to everyone who reviewed! You all motivated me a lot, so I tried to get the next chapter done as quickly as I could... Enjoy!

Chapter 3: This is harder than we thought

The next morning Craig and Tweek made their way from their new shared apartment to the first class of the day. After having slept in their two bedroom apartment, Tweek felt a bit more confident. DWMA seemed to be a boarding school like any other at first glance. Their rooms were quite comfortable and had everything they could possibly need. There was a large comfy bed in each room, a few cupboards and shelves that provided plenty of space and -thank god- a wall in between him and Craig. It had taken a lot of resolve and meditation on Tweeks part to fall asleep in a new and oh so different place If he would have been forced to listen Crag's breathing all through the night he definitely wouldn't have caught any sleep at all. But with a door in between their respective rooms the blonde felt a bit less self conscious.

From the inside the school didn't look quite as intimidating as it had from the outside. The floor was made from dark stone, but most of the walls were painted a bright creme color. Dark brown wooden panels were placed along their lower halves, giving them a surprisingly warm though old fashioned look.

Tweek clutched a sheet of paper in his hand which held a detailed map of all the classrooms which was more than essential in a huge building such as the academy. It had taken the two of them almost 15 minutes to make their way down the tower in which their apartment was located to find the right corridor somewhere on ground level. The paper invited all the new students to meet in a classroom together before they were sorted into their respective classes.

It was easy to find the right room, as the newbies were the only ones in regular clothes instead of the gray uniform that all the other students had to wear. The classroom was round and the teacher's desk was placed below the half circle shaped rows of seats, so the teacher would look up at them while teaching. A lot of students had already found the classroom before them and had already chosen a seat. It seemed to be a gathering just short of 20 people all in all, most about the same age as Tweek and Craig, but some might have already been in their twenties or even a little younger than them.

It was easy to tell who was a Meister and who was the Weapon, Tweek noticed. Their clothes gave them away as the most of them donned the typically shabby peasant clothes in either brown or green. But on top of that, their body language gave them away; many of them sat besides their counterparts, silent and apparently unaffected.

Their Meisters were foreseeably dressed in much more colorful clothes - many of them proudly showing of family crests on their clothes- and talked animatedly amongst themselves .

Tweek and Craig sat down in one of the last (and highest) seats, just as the teacher entered the room through a side door near the black board. He was around 40 or 50 years old, with thin wiry hair and a head that seemed to big for his thin body. He wore a green HEMD with a black tie and gray trousers. His black glasses with roundish frames sat atop a crooked nose. All in all he reminded Tweek of a very frail bird. A sickly looking vulture maybe.

"Hello Class", the teacher began to speak in a slow and slightly high voice. "My name is Mr. Mackey and I will be one of your teachers this year. You will receive your schedule after the sorting." He then proceeded to take attendance but Tweek couldn't memorize any names as they were called too quickly.

"Here at DWMA we have two different classes for each grade. EAT classes are for the advanced students. The name stands for Especially Advantaged Talent. Then there is the NOT class which stands for Normally Overcome Target- for those of you who need some more time to develop your skills. Before we can sort you into either EAT Or NOT classes, there will be a few small tests to see where were we should put you, m'kay?"

"TESTS?" someone exclaimed and beat Tweek to it, who had been about to shout the very same thing.

Mr. Mackey looked genuinely surprised. " Yes, of course. How else would we determine your level of skills? You all come from different backgrounds and have some have had preparatory training. If we were to put you into a class that would be either to advanced or too easy for you, there would be some problems later on, right? Therefore, we will test you current abilities first, like physical strength, stamina, soul resonance, your skills at detecting auras, and so on... there will be some practical tests, so please follow me."

"Oh god..." a brown haired boy one row ahead of Tweek's muttered in a whiny voice as he got up with way more effort than really was necessary. "We have barely arrived and already they're testing us."

His weapon was a handsome black boy, easily taller than even Craig, who wasn't exactly short himself. "Don't worry." he said in a melodic calm tone. "It probably won't be too hard."

Craig stood up next to him lazily, obviously not too pleased about having to get up after just sitting down, either. He looked into Tweek's eyes and gave a slight nod. It probably wouldn' t be too hard.

The followed the teacher into a big hall which seemed to function as a gym or training area, where a few more teachers were already waiting. Here Mr. Mackey assigned the students to their test administrators. Tweek and Craig were to follow a certain Mr. Adler (a balding short man in his fifties who didn't look like the kind of person who would enjoy exercise at all but was content to watch from the sidelines) to their physical evaluation.

Of all the things Mr. Mackey had summed up, the strength and stamina tests scared Tweek by far the most. Sure, his father had had him learn a little bit of fencing but his son had never exactly excelled at anything that require a certain amount of fitness and coordination.

Why hadn't his father informed him that there would be test? Ah yes, because the man had never been in the academy himself but now liked to place all his hopes and dreams on his son's shoulders!

Tweek was so engaged in his little internal fit that he only realized they had stooped in front of a giant red high striker when he felt Craig's big (and warm) hand on his shoulder, stopping him from running directly into Mr. Adler.

"Boys, now you take that hammer over there and hit the pad as hard as you can. We will do that 3 times and I will write down your best score. And no screwing around!"

The boys looked at each other for a moment to determine who would go first. Craig took charge and went to take the almost comically large hammer in both hands. For a second he evaluated the distance between hammer and target, then he swung down the hammer in a swift, fluid movement and brought it down with an effortless kind of strike that was forceful enough to make the puck fly above the three quarter mark.

Tweek's jaw would have hit the floor if it wasn't attached to his face as firmly as it was.

"Oh, not bad." Commented Mr. Adler. "But you can do better."

"Yeah..." Craig replied before assuming his earlier pose and striking again, this time doing even better than before.

"He's amazing!" was all the blonde could think. His Weapon was an incredibly strong guy! A strange sense pride rushed through him and made him almost grin widely. Then he remembered, that he would be up next.

Craig swung the hammer down for the last time, but couldn't quite reach his second score again.

Mr. Adler noted the (for Tweek absolutely an staggering) 80 out of 100 on his clip board with a satisfied nod and then waved the smaller boy towards the high striker.

Tweek walked up to the thing that towered at least two meters above him and almost seemed to laugh at him. Now from up close he could read that there were little comments written underneath the numbers. Underneath the number 10 the words _" A baby could hit harder than that. Go back home!"_ grinned at him evilly.

He tried to swallow the lump in his throat, grabbed the hammer, swung wide and brought the hammer down with as much force as he could-

only to hit partly besides the target, mostly just hitting the frame. The puck rose up lazily, struggling against gravity, only to sink back down after barely rising above 20.

"_If you're a girl- that wasn't exactly great, dear. If you're a boy - shame on you!"_ was what the high striker had to say to that.

Tweek froze. How could he have missed?! And right in front of the teacher and his Weapon, too!

"Uhm... no problem. Try again." said Mr. Adler after an awkward moment of silence.

Tweek muttered a quick "Yes, sorry..." and tried again, this time checking a bit more carefully where the hammer should come down upon the target.

This time, the puck reach a staggering... well, 40.

"_Some serious extra training is in order."_

Well, that was... almost acceptable, wasn't it? He had one more try. Perhaps he could do at least a little better. He took a deep breath, resumed a firm stand and slammed the hammer down again.

This time he made it almost up to the 50 mark.

"So- So." was what the letters underneath the 50 read.

"I'm going to count that as a 50..." the teacher muttered, not quite as impressed with the Meister as he had been with the Weapon.

After the first test, Tweek dreaded to see how he compared to Craig in the other categories.

As was to be expected, Craig was better at running too, both when it came to stamina and speed. The blonde almost wanted to crawl into his bed and hide under the covers for a while when Mr. Adler brought them back to the main training hall to fetch the next pair he was supposed to test.

Mr. Mackey now took the sheet with their results and attached it to his own clip board.

"Now that we have evaluated your physical abilities, it's time to test your skills in regards to the soul resonance." he explained while walking them into an empty class room. On some of the tables there were black boxes, not big enough to contain any more than a pair of shoes or something equally sized.

"There are different types of things hidden in these boxes that radiate some sort of resonance. You are supposed to check each only with your mental skills, that means no touching the boxes is allowed. Describe to me as well as you can what is inside. One of you will start while the other has to wait outside."

"I'll wait", Craig announced and left the room, closing the door behind him.

The young Meister stepped forward cautiously. Hopefully, he would perform better at this kind of test... but what if there was something dangerous in one of the boxes? What if suddenly the lid of the nearest box were to fly open, revealing some..._creature _ready to attack_?_

"Go ahead," Mr. Mackey placated him as if he knew why Tweek hesitated.

"There is nothing in any of these boxes that could harm you."

Carefully Tweek stepped in front of the first box. It was plain cardboard, with nothing to indicate its contents noticeable.

The blonde closed his eyes and tried to reach past his five normal senses. He knew he could do this. His parents had always affirmed to him that he had some talent in this field. Now it was time to prove them right. Hopefully.

If asked, Tweek wouldn't be able to really describe in detail how he knew what he knew. There was a slight warmth radiating from the first container, but not one that could be felt on the skin. It was like a cool white light that he could see in front of his inner eye,but blurry, like he couldn't fully focus on it.

"It's a soul." He stated. "But not a tainted one... it's bright."

Mr. Mackey scribbled something on his sheet. "Very good. Go on."

The fact that he had been right gave the blond some more confidence.

He was able to identify the next one easily, a tainted soul felt much heavier and more heated than a pure one. The one after that was a little trickier because he had never felt this kind of resonance before. It was different from a tainted soul, but somewhat similar. If he were to describe it by giving it a color he would probably call it violet.

"I'm not sure." he admitted to the teacher who was looking at him expectantly.

"But I think it might be witch's soul."

The teacher smiled at him brightly. "That's right. You definitely have a sharp sixth sense."

Tweek gave a slightly embarrassed smile back. That was at least one talent he had.

The content of the next box was entirely different, he could tell. It was no soul. Mr. Mackey nodded to this assumption.

"But do you know what's in there if it's not a soul?"

"Not really. But it's... it's something... alive?"

"Yes, it is. It's a small demon in there. But don't worry, it's securely restrained. Can you feel it?It feels much like the soul of an animal would, but there is also a strong source of magic in it's core."

But it was the last box that got to Tweek.

No matter how much of an effort he put into identifying what was in there, he just couldn't pick up on it.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Mackey. I really can't tell this time." he admitted after a few minutes of trying.

"It's as if nothing's in there."

The teacher smiled and casually walked up the the box, lifting up the lid to show Tweek the contents. Nothing. It was completely empty.

"Sometimes things are much simpler then one might think they are." Mr. Mackey said and went to note his score down on the sheet of paper.

Then he called in Craig and Tweek was the one who had to wait outside.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOX

As Mr. Mackey had let slip, Craig was among the 3 best students when it came to the physical part of the evaluation, but was merely average when it came to sensing soul resonances.

"I could only identify the first two", he told his Meister as they all re-entered the main hall. "The other three I had no idea. I was trying to guess, but it didn't work out too well.".

Tweek smiled. He was happy that there was at least some balance in their skills. Hopefully their combined scores would be high enough to get them into the advanced EAT Classes.

All the teacher and students had gathered in the room by now and an gray haired man who introduced himself as Mr. Garrison told them to stand together as pairs in a half circle with some space around them.

"Now children, we will see who is already able to turn their partner into an actual Weapon."

It felt as if someone had dumped a brick in Tweek's stomach. How was he supposed to do that? Why were they including this in the tests at the very first day? Wasn't it something way too complex to be done just like that!?

"All the Weapons who are wearing long sleeves should roll them up, so the marks can be fully seen. Now, the Meisters grip the wrist of the Weapons, so you're touching the mark with your palm..."

Craig held out his arm expectantly. The sleeve of his dark blue shirt was rolled up to his elbow so the mark could be seen clearly. On the inner side of his wrist there was the circle mark which contained various thin squares and tiny symbols. Tweek took a deep calming breath before he carefully extended his hand to grip the taller boy's arm. An invisible but tangible trickle of magic flared up at the direct contact. His skin was warm and smooth, the black lines couldn't be felt at all.

"Now it is very important that both of you work together. The marks serve as an amplifier The energy needed to turn your partner into an actual weapon is already there. You just need to follow that flow and manifest it."

"Easier said than done." muttered a slim boy with fiery auburn curls next to them, while gripping the arm of his dark haired weapon tightly.

"Now everyone give it a try at the count of three. 1...2...3!"

Tweek gripped the magic that was between him and his Weapon tightly. For a second, the two of them held eye contact but then it was broken as Craig's form shifted in a flash of light. The arm that Tweek held suddenly became very heavy and he couldn't hold it up in the air with just one hand.

The was a loud noise of metal crashing against stone as some part of Craig hit the floor.

After a second of confusion Tweek understood why.

There wasn't anything close to a human form anymore. Just a big lump of metal that looked like someone had just thrown a blob of hot steel to the floor and left it to cool down into a weird ragged shape. In his hand there was an elongated part that probably should have become some sort of handle.

A few meters to his left, someone screamed. Completely at a loss, Tweek could only gaze over to the boy whose Weapon had turned into a metallic liquid and was forming a big puddle on the floor. Tweek recognized him to be the brunet boy that had been sitting in the class room one row before him and Craig.

Tweek looked back down at the crippled, deformed mess that had been Craig only second ago and felt violently sick.

More screaming ensued – a very voluminous guy and a pretty girl with black hair were having a shouting match and threw accusation back and forth, some others also had misshaped pieces of metal in their hands, some pairs hadn't been able to do anything and now just looked at each other in bemusement.

"Okay, turn back now children." Mr. Garrison shouted over all the noise, while rushing to help the boy who by now stood in a lake of liquid metal that was just freely flowing into various different directions all at once.

The thing in his hand shuddered, then shifted and grew, until it was a man again, even if he looked worse for wear.

After a minute every Weapon except for the puddle on the floor had somehow been turned back into a human. Only now that the chaos had been subdued some by the teachers did Tweek notice that the red haired boy next to him held something in his hands that could actually be counted as a Weapon.

It was a scythe, this much was obvious. It looked a little crooked, a bit to rough here and there, as if it was a statue not yet quite finished. But it definitely was a Weapon, and by far the best that anyone in the room had managed to produce.

Not ten minutes later all the new students were back in the classroom, most of the Meister/ Weapon duos sitting closely beside each other as to comfort one another after that big shock.

Craig looked incredibly tired but otherwise fine. He sat close enough to Tweek that their shoulders and thighs touched. The brunet boy sat in front of them again, his Weapon was back to his human state as well and had his arm tightly around the trembling Meister.

Mr. Garrison and Mr. Mackey had stayed with the class to make sure everyone was fine. Now they were standing below the rows of students in front of the desk and reading out the names of the students and into which class they were to attend from now on. Tweek was to exhausted to really listen and was only startled into listening when his own name was called.

"Tweek Tweak and Craig Tucker- EAT class!"

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO

End of Chapter 3

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO

Phew...it took me ages to write the beginning and the end just suddenly wrote itself without me doing much besides typing. And if high strikers didn't exist back in the 19th/20th century... well let's pretend they did, they are the only mechanical device to measure strength I could think of.

I think I might also sketch the uniforms they will get as I have no idea how to describe them...

Sometimes I struggle with expressions a bit... maybe I should look for a beta? :3


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